Emerald City: Urban Planning for Seattle
September 28, 2013 By Leave a Comment
The population of Seattle in 2010 was 608,660, up from 563,375 in 2000, and it’s still growing. According to the Seattle Department of Planning and Development, that number could increase by 70,000 over the next 20 years. Lawrence W. Cheek’s article in The Seattle Times, “Small-scale solutions to Seattle’s huge urban-housing needs,” highlights the demand for more city housing.
How do developers meet housing needs in densely populated areas? Small-scale solutions are one focal point for Seattle architects and builders. Bill Parks, a longtime developer, works to create multi-residential housing options that offer a real sense of community. His current Ballard project at 24th Avenue and 65th Street is a five-story apartment complex that feels neighborly. “Its three buildings will surround a courtyard with a fountain, and the public — the larger neighborhood — won’t be locked out of the courtyard, at least not during the day. It’s a modest and cautious gesture toward openness, but in a rapidly densifying Seattle it stakes out a principle that’s increasingly rare.”
As Seattle developers and architects work to keep pace with population growth, they might take some cues from the successful strategies used by other big cities. Brent Toderian, President of Toderian UrbanWorks in Vancouver, Canada, suggests three necessary components for density done well in Planetizen.com.
- Multi-modal transportation
- High architectural standards
- Amenities that support public life
Vancouver, one of the most densely populated cities in North America after New York City and San Francisco, is considered a very livable metropolitan area. The city’s urban planning has focused on high-rise residential and mixed-use development rather than urban sprawl. As a result, the city has been able to maintain both a large population and lots of open space, and these priorities certainly resonate with those who reside in and around the Emerald City.
– See more at: http://bobneal.info/2013/09/24/urban-planning-in-the-emerald-city/#sthash.3a1TIF4e.dpuf
Housing Recovery According To DIY Giants
September 23, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Both Home Depot and Lowe’s, the nation’s largest DIY home improvement stores, have outperformed the broader market in sales earnings. CNNMoney’s Paul R. La Monica says the retailers’ positive gains clearly point to the recovery of housing as fact, not fiction.
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Real Estate Market Update for September 2013
September 12, 2013 By Leave a Comment
The latest on what’s happening in our real estate market.
The latest figures from Northwest MLS show pending sales (mutually accepted offers) during August increased 8.7 percent from a year ago. Brokers in the 21 counties served by the MLS reported 9,065 pending sales system-wide. That’s a drop of 500 units from July, but an increase of 727 transactions compared to a year ago (August 2012). In the four-county Puget Sound region (King, Kitsap, Pierce, and Snohomish), the total of 6,916 pending sales was the highest volume for August since 2006 when members notched 7,692 sales.
Click for the entire article.
Fannie Mae’s Housing Forecast
September 6, 2013 By Leave a Comment
In case you are wonder who she is 😉 here’s a link.
What’s Going On In Seattle Real Estate
August 27, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Seattle home prices zipping upward, but slowdown likely: The housing market in Seattle and other major U.S. cities has been racing ahead on full throttle in recent months, but experts say the price growth should soon slow to a more normal pace. The Greater Seattle market in May posted a 3.1 percent monthly gain, its largest since April 1990, according to data released Tuesday. The region’s 12-month increase was 11.9 percent — the biggest annual gain since December 2006. Seattle’s not alone: The widely watched S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city home-price index rose 2.4 percent from April to May, and 12.2 percent over the year.
Source: The Seattle Times, July 30, 2013
http://seattletimes.com/html/businesstechnology/2021502915_caseshiller31xml.html
King County median home price up 15 percent over year ago: A bump in interest rates in July didn’t derail the strongest home-buying stretch in the Seattle area since 2007, as the median price climbed year-over-year for the 16th consecutive month. The median price of single-family homes sold in King County last month jumped to $434,000, up 15 percent from a year ago and up 1.5 percent from June, according to figures from the Northwest Multiple Listing Service. And the number of pending home sales — offers that have been accepted, but haven’t yet closed — remained above 3,000, the busiest July since 2005.
Source: The Seattle Times, August 6, 2013
http://seattletimes.com/html/businesstechnology/2021549284_julyhomesalesxml.html
Seattle homes selling faster than U.S. average: When it comes to selling homes fast (within one or two weeks), homes in Seattle continue to sell faster than the national average, with 42.5 percent of new listings under contract within two weeks, compared with the U.S. average of 30.5 percent. According to Seattle-based online real estate company Redfin, 29.9 percent of Seattle listings were under contract in one week, which compares with a national average of 19 percent. “There were eight offers on this Wedgewood home, and according to the listing agent, the winner paid big money and waived every contingency,” said one Redfin real estate agent. “The percentage of homes that went under contract within two weeks decreased from 31.9 percent nationwide in May to 30.5 percent in June as inventory growth continued to ease the pressure on buyers to act fast,” according to a Redfin statement.
Source: Puget Sound Business Journal, August 5, 2013
